The present invention relates generally to the use of a singular portable detachable grip which provides a temporary detachable grip and handle to engage the edge of a cardboard, Styrofoam or wood box for the purpose of handling said boxes.
The majority of boxes or cartons supplied industry today are of cardboard. A few are of Styrofoam and of wood. Except for wood their surfaces are smooth and slick. Such surfaces make them difficult to grasp for handling, especially if relatively heavy and large enough so that they are cumbersome to lift, pick up off the floor or otherwise difficult to handle. Boxes come in a multitude of sizes. Larger ones are sometimes cumbersome for one person to handle them for moving them. Some have built in handles but these will break while others have slots in their sides which work fine till they get wet and then they fail. Boxes are not always in a convenient location to allow them to be easily handled. By providing an improved grip that is used on any edge of any box solves the problem of getting a secure grip on a box in almost any location for moving, thus solving the problems of breaking handles, slots failing, the chances of dropping a box or a person falling backwards thus causing an injury because of a poor grip. A known prior art is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,206,114 issued to Werner Jul. 2, 1940. It describes a permanent handle mounted in a container""s side. The carton must be permanently punched so the handle can work. Secondly, it protrudes into the container. A second known prior art is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,226,349 issued to Ucellini Oct. 7, 1980. This device has several defects which are listed as follows:
1. The patent itself states that it is for xe2x80x9cfibrous box such as cardboardxe2x80x9d which restricts it""s use to only such containers.
2. The device has projections that are on a flat plane for use in engaging the side walls of a box. To use it effectively it can only be used on a matching flat plane large enough to accept it.
3. The xe2x80x9cabstractxe2x80x9d of said patent describes the device as a xe2x80x9cpair . . . of grips for engaging . . . the lateral sides of a boxxe2x80x9d. However, in a fast paced work environment i.e. loading moving conveyers from carts or off loading moving conveyers into carts or on pallets or off-loading gravity chutes, and having to use a pair of grips would make them very inefficient and cumbersome to use.
4. The projections are fixed and can not be adjusted for any depth needed. Therefore, its use is further restricted to fibrous or possibly styrofoam containers.
5. The projections are fixed at an angle and in one direction. This further restricts how the device may be used. As shown in FIG. 3 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,226,314 the direction of use is in an upward direction. It may be presumed to be useable to move a box. However, the single direction of the projections makes it difficult to move a box where a box is under a shelf or in close proximinty to another one.
6. Once the projections are bent and then bent back, the device loses its ability to function and after being bent back several times they will break off due to the constant bending.
7. They offer no protection to any person as there is no way for them to retract so any person who rubs against the projections may suffer an injury.
The present invention provides a hand held detachable grip for a carton or box which can be temporarily attached to any edge of a box for handling it. The present invention also provides a handle on one right angle side for lifting vertically when engaged with the edge of a box. With the present invention having spring loaded teeth, and after being forced into engaging the box, it will automatically retract with the release of pressure to a position that makes it safe for the user of the present invention. The teeth of the present invention also have a minor small adjustment as for changing their depth of penetration for the wall of the box being handled. In addition to cardboard and styrofoam, the present invention can also be used on wood.
In accordance with the present invention a temporarily detachable grip comprises a rigid right angle piece of metal having a means of attaching to the edge of a box and having teeth with which to engage the wall of a box contiguous to the edge of a box for the purpose of handling said box with said teeth being fully retractable for safety purposes and with a means to adjust for the depth of penetration of the thickness of the wall of the box being handled as well as preventing damage to the contents of the box. The present invention also has a carrying handle for the purpose of maintaining control of the present invention while using it and which handle also provides a means for lifting a box vertically without slipping off the hand. A carrying strap hole is in one end to allow it to be carried on the person of the user with a carrying strap when not in use.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
1. To provide a single grip that can be used in either the left or right hand equally well on any container made of cardboard, styrofoam or wood.
2. To provide a grip that can easily be used in a work environment that is either slow or fast paced.
3. To provide a grip having teeth that are adjustable for the depth of penetration needed in relation to the thickness or density of the box being handled.
4. To provide a grip with teeth that can retract so as to prevent serious injury to the user.
5. To provide a grip that will simultaneously support itself and the object being lifted, especially when lifting vertically.
Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings, their description and ensuing description.